Latch operating door handle



1970 a. SANDOR 3,544,148

LATCH OPERATING DOOR HANDLE Filed Nov. 21, 1968 Jmli W .llllllmllllli.

IN VILNI '(IR.

A T TORNE Y fie/a Jana oz I United States Patent 3,544,148 LATCHOPERATING DOOR HANDLE Bela Sandor, Detroit, Mich., assignor to GeneralMotors Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Delaare Filed Nov.21, 1968, Ser. No. 777,683 Int. Cl. Eb 5/02 US. Cl. 292-3363 5 ClaimsABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A latch operating outside door handle forvehicle body doors includes an elongated handle member of the typeincluding integral thumb and finger gripping portions pivotally mountedon a door escutcheon by a pivot stud adjacent the thumb portion of thehandle member for rotation between an inoperative or a normal positiongenerally flush with the door and an extended position operative foroutside actuation of the door latch. A handle latching member ispivotally carried within the thumb portion of the handle member andcarries a latch ing pin cooperating with slots in the handle escutcheonto normally positively latch the handle member in its inoperativeposition but responsive to thumb pressure to release the pin and permitmovement of the handle member between its inoperative and operativepositions.

This invention relates to vehicle body door handles and moreparticularly to an improved latch operating handle for vehicle bodydoors including means for normally preventing actuating rotationthereof.

One feature of this invention is that it provides an improved latchoperating handle for vehicle body doors and of the type including athumb portion and an elongated finger gripping portion rotatable betweeninoperative and latch actuating positions, with handle latching meansbeing provided for normally holding the handle in its inoperativeposition against actuating rotation therefrom except the application ofmanual pressure to the handle member releasing the latch means.

Another feature of this invention is in the provision of such a handleparticularly including integral thumb and finger gripping portions thelatter of which lies substantially flush with the door in theinoperative position, with the handle latching means being connectedwith an actuating member mounted in the thumb portion of the handlemember and responsive to thumb pressure thereon for release of the latchmeans and a subsequent actuating rotation of the handle member. Certainother features of the invention reside in the use of a latching pin andslot means forming the handle latching means and in the use of a pivotedhandle release or actuating member pivotally mounted directly within thethumb portion of the latch handle.

These and other features and advantages of the invention will be readilyapparent from the following description and from the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a portion of a vehicle'body door including therein a latch operating handle according to thisinvention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken generally along the plane indicated bythe lines 22 of FIG. 1 and showing the handle member in flushinoperative position and the handle latching means in latched position;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 showing the handle latching means inunlatched position;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 showing the handle member in thelatch actuating position thereof;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken generally along the plane indicated bythe lines 5-5 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken generally along the plane indicated bythe lines 66 of FIG. 1.

Referring now particularly to FIG. 1 of the drawings, a latch operatinghandle assembly according to the invention designated generally as 10 isshown mounted on a vehicle body door outer panel indicated at 12. As isWell understood in the art, the location of the handle assembly 10 isfunctional with respect to the location of the door latch and lockmechanism for the vehicle body door customarily located adjacent thefree-swinging edge thereof. Particularly, the handle assembly 10 isadapted for cooperation with a movable actuating portion of the doorlatch mechanism usually referred to as the push button lever or latchrelease lever. Such lever is indicated in the drawings at 14 and shownin a normal or unactuated position in FIGS. 2 and 3.

Referring further to such figures, the handle assembly 10 generallyincludes a decorative escutcheon 16 of diecast or similarly fabricatedhollow construction received in a complementarily shaped opening 18 inthe door outer panel 12, the escutcheon having a decorative flange orlip 20 overlying the marginal or edge portion of the panel de fining theopening. The escutcheon may be provided with suitable attaching bossstructure as at 22 for fastening of the escutcheon to a reinforcing ordoor inner panel, not shown, as by screws or the like. Received withinthe escutcheon 16 is an operating handle member 24 which may becharacterized as generally of the flush type and including in thepreferred embodiment integrally formed thumb and finger grippingportions 26 and 28 respectively. The handle member is pivotally mountedon the escutcheon 16 by a pivot stud 30 press-fitted or otherwisesecured into aligned openings in the upper and lower walls of theescutcheon and rotatably received in similarly aligned bores in theupper and lower walls formed in the thumb portion 26 of the handlemember, FIG. 5. These upper and lower walls define a generally hollowconfiguration to the major part of the thumb portion 26. The pivot stud30 mounts the handle member for rotation relative to the escutcheon froman inoperative position shown in FIG. 2, wherein the gripping portion 28lies within the escutcheon substantially flush with the outer panel 12and engaged with a stop button 31, to an operative or latch actuatingposition shown generally in FIG. 4. In moving from the inoperative tothe latch actuating position, a latch actuating cam or nose 32 formed atthe free end of the thumb portion 26 is adapted for operative engagementwith the latch release lever 14 upon initial such movement and tothereafter carry the lever 14 to its latch actuating position indicatedgenerally in FIG. 4.

Means for latching the handle member 24 to the escutcheon 16 includes acooperating latch pin and latch slot structure in the handle member andthe escutcheon normally engaged in the inoperative position of thehandle shown in FIG. 2, to positively hold the same therein.Particularly, escutcheon 16 includes in the upper and lower wallportions thereof in the vicinity of the handle member thumb portion 26 apair of latching slots 3'4 each including a first or latching portion 36extending generally radially of pivot stud 30 and divergently relatedfrom a further or freewheeling portion 38 formed generally circularlyabout the center of the pivot stud. Cooperating with such slots 34, alsoseen in FIG. 6, is a latch pin 40 extending between the walls of theescutcheon to have its opposite ends received in the slots and carriedintermediate its ends in a bore of a latch pin actuating member 42. Suchmember 42 is of generally hook-like shape including a thumb portion 44normally extending for exterior projection from the handle member thumbportion 26 and further including a stop leg 46. The actuating member 42is pivotally secured within the recess of the handle member thumbportion by a pin 48- between the upper and lower walls of the latter. Acoil torsion spring 50 is wrapped about the pivot stud 30 and bears atits ends on the escutcheon 16 and on the thumb portion 44 of theactuating member to serve to bias the actuating member in acounterclockwise direction relative to the handle member 24 and to inturn bias the handle member counterclockwise about its pivot stud 30 tothe inoperative position within the escutcheon shown in FIG. 2.

Assuming now that the handle assembly is in the condition of the partsshown in FIG. 2 and that it is desired to employ the handle assembly fordoor latch releases through actuation of the release lever 14, thumbpressure is applied to the thumb portion 44 of the actuating member 42.Such thumb pressure causes rotation of the actuating member about pin 48against the action of torsion spring 50 to move the latch pin 40 in aclockwise direction out of the latching portion 26 of slots 34, asshown, to the position of FIG. 3. With the latch pin so located, theactuating member 42 and the handle member 24 are freed for clockwiserotation as a unit relative to the escutcheon about the pivot stud 30.Thus, continued thumb pressure engaging the stop leg 46 with the wall ofthe handle member will rotate these parts as a unit about 'the pivotstud oscillating the latch pin 40 through the freewheeling portions 38of the slots 34.. The initial movement of the handle member 24 from theinoperative to the latch actuating position under the thumb pressurewill expose enough of the gripping portion 28 to facilitate graspingthereof by the fingers such that the latter portion may then be used tocomplete the rotation of the handle member to the latch actuatingposition of FIG. 4 wherein release lever 14 has been engaged and movedby nose 32 to the latch releasing position thereof. Such rotation of thehandle member of course proceeds against the reaction of the torsionspring 50.

Once latch actuation operation of the handle member 24 is accomplished,release of the hand allows torsion spring 50 to return the partscounterclockwise back to the inoperative position of FIG. 3, thepressure of the torsion spring of course first being applied to theactuating member 42 seeking counterclockwise rotation of the latterrelative to the handle member thumb portion 26. However, the concentricnature of the freewheeling slot portions 38 in cooperation with thelatch pin 40 prevents such relative rotation, and also any interferingengagemeans and cooperating slot means, said slot means including afirst portion receiving said pin means throughout movement of saidlatching means between latched and unlatched positions in theinoperativeposition of said handle member and cooperable with said pin means inholding said handle member therein, and said slot means including afurther portion receiving said pin means in the unlatched position ofsaid latching means and permitting unobstructed freewheeling relativemovement thereof and movement of said handle member between theinoperative and the operative positions thereof, and means on saidhandle member responsive to manual pressure applied thereto in theinoperative position of said handle member to selectively move saidlatching means from the latched to the unlatched position thereofpermiting movement of said handle member from the inoperative to theoperative position thereof.

2. In a vehicle body including a dot swingable between open and closedpositions, operating door handle means comprising, an elongated handlemember including integral thumb and finger gripping portions, pivotmeans for mounting said handle member adjacent the thumb portion thereofon said door for movement of the handle member relative thereto betweenan inoperative position wherein the finger gripping portion liessubstantially flush with the door and an operative position adapted foractuation of a door latch and wherein the finger gripping portionextends substantially from the door, latching means on said handlemember and on said door movable between latched and unlatched positionsin the inopeartive position of said handle member, said latching meansincluding pin means and cooperating slot means, said slot meansincluding a first portion receiving said pin means throughout movementof said latching means between latched and unlatched positions in theinoperative position of said handle member and cooperable with said pinmeans in holding said handle member therein, and said slot meansincluding a further ment of the latch pin on any corners of theescutcheon,

so that the force of the spring as applied directly for return rotationof the handle member and the actuating member as a unit to the positionof FIG. 3. Once reaching this position, latch pin 40 is freed from therestraint of the freewheeling portions of slots 3'4 so that the springpressure now rotates the actuating member 42 counterclockwise about pin48 relative to the thumb portion 26 and back to the normal or latchingposition thereof shown in FIG. 2. In this position, the latch pin 40 isagain located in the latching portions, 36 of slots 34 so as to beoperative to positively prevent rotation of the handle member 24 fromits inoperative position except upon a repeated deliberate applicationof thumb pressure to actuating member 42 removing the latch pin fromslot portions 36.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed 1. In a vehiclebody including a door swingable between: open and closed positions,operating door handle means comprising, an elongated handle member,means mounting said handle member adjacent one end thereof on said doorfor movement between an inoperative position adjacent the door and anextended operative position adapted for actuation of a door latch,latching means on said handle member and on said door movable betweenlatched and unlatched positions inthe inoperative position of saidhandle member, said latching means including pin portion receiving saidpin means in the unlatched position of said latching means andpermitting unobstructed freewheeling relative movement thereof andmovement of said hnadle member between the inoperative and the operativepositions thereof, and an actuating member mounted on the thumb portionof said handle member and manually operable to release said latchingmeans for movement of said handle member from the inoperative to theoperative position thereof.

3. In a vehicle body including a door swingable between open and closedpositions, flush type operating door handle means comprising, anelongated handle member including integral thumb and finger grippingportions, an escutcheon on said door, pivot means mounting said handlemember adjacent the thumb portion thereof on said escutcheon formovement about the axis of said pivot means between an inoperativeposition wherein said gripping portion lies substantially flush withsaid door and an operative position adpated for actuation of a doorlatch and wherein said gripping portion is swung outwardly substantiallyfrom said door, latching means on said handle member and on saidescutcheon normally engageable in the inoperative position of saidhandle member to positively hold the same therein, said latching meansincluding an actuating member pivotally mounted on the thumb portion ofsaid handle member and carrying interiorly thereof a latching pinpivotable with said actuating member between latched and unlatchedpositions, said latching means further including slot means in saidescutcheon receiving said latching pin and including a first portiondirected generally radially of said pivot means axis receiving saidlatching pin in the range of movement thereof between latched andunlatched positions when said handle member is in the inoperativeposition thereof and cooperable with said latching pin to hold saidhandle member therein, said 'slot means including a further portionmerging with said first portion and arcuate about said pivot means axisfor receiving said latching pin in the unlatched position thereof andpermitting unobstructed freewheeling movement thereof and of said handlemember as a unit between the inoperative and the opertive positions ofsaid handle member, and means biasing said actuating member and saidlatching pin to said latching position thereof and in turn through saidactuating member biasing said handle member from the opertive to theinoperative position thereof, said actuating member including a portionexposed exteriorly of said handle member thumb portion for manipulationby thumb pressure to pivot and move said latching pin from the latchedto the unlatched position thereof against the action of said biasingmeans.

4. In a vehicle body including a door swingable between open and closedpositions, operating door handle means comprising, an escutcheon mountedon said door, an elongated handle member including thumb and fingergripping portions, means on said handle member adjacent one end thereofcorresponding to said thumb portion thereof swingably mounting saidhandle member on said escutcheon, said handle member being swingablerelative to said escutcheon between an inoperative portion adjacent saiddoor and an extended operative position adapted for actuation of a doorlatch, latching means operative to hold said handle member normally insaid inoperative position thereof and including a latch element mountedin said thumb position of said handle member for movement between alatched position engaged with a further latch element on said escutcheonwhen said handle member is in the inoperative position thereof and anunlatched position out of engagement with said further latch element,means biasing the first mentioned latch element to the latched positionthereof such that said handle member is normally latched when in theinoperative position thereof, and an actuating member mounted on saidthumb portion of said handle member and responsive to thumb pressureapplied thereto to move said first mentioned latch element from thelatched to the unlatched position thereof.

5. In a vehicle body including a door swingable between open and closedpositions, operating door handle means comprising an escutcheon mountedon said door,

an elongated handle member including thumb and finger gripping portions,means on said handle member adjacent one end thereof corresponding tosaid thumb portion thereof swingably mounting said handle member on saidescutcheon, said handle member being swingable relative to saidescutcheon between an inoperative position adjacent said door and anextended operative position adapted for actuation of a door latch, anactuating member movably mounted on said thumb portion of said handlemember, latching means on said actuating member and on said escutcheonmovable in the inoperative position of said handle member between alatched position holding said handle member in the inoperative positionand an unlatched position releasing said handle member for movementbetween the inoperative and operative positions, said latching meansincluding a first latch element mounted on said actuating member andmovable unitarily therewith between a position engaged with a secondlatch element on said escutcheon in said latched position of saidlatching means and a position disengaged from said second latch elementin said unlatched position of said latching means, and a torsion springbetween said actuating member and said escutcheon biasing said actuatingmember and said first latch element toward the latched position of saidlatching means so that said handle member is normaly latched in theinoperative position thereof and through said actuating member acting tobias said handle member toward said inoperative position thereof.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 966,349 8/1910 McCullah 292-2l02,208,818 7/ 1940 Schafiler 292-3 36.3 2,613,971 10/ 1952 Goserud 292207X 2,710,213 6/ 1955 Hottel 292207 3,250,558 5/ 1966 McClintock 292-229FOREIGN PATENTS 17,160 4/ 1913 Denmark 292--209 MARVIN A. CHAMPION,Primary Examiner E. J. McCARTHY, Assistant Examiner

